Garland Man Admits Downloading Child Pornography of Children As Young as Two-Years-Old

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 20, 2012

Faces Up to 20 Years in Federal Prison

DALLAS — Isaac Heredia Luciano, 25, of Garland, Texas, appeared today in federal court in Dallas, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul D. Stickney, and pleaded guilty to an Information charging one count of transporting and shipping child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas. He faces a maximum penalty of not less than five years or more than 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. A sentencing date was not set. Luciano has been in federal custody since he surrendered to authorities last month on a related federal charge outlined in a criminal complaint.

According to documents filed in the case, a detective with the Garland Police Department who was working in an undercover capacity and using peer-to-peer file sharing program to investigate the distribution of child pornography, identified a computer that was sharing images of child pornography. In fact, on various dates from September 2011 until August 2012, the detective downloaded 27 images and videos of child pornography from that computer, including videos involving children as young as two-years-old, who could be heard on the videos crying and yelling “mommy.”

In late August 2012, a search warrant was executed at Luciano’s home in Garland and computers and related storage equipment were seized. Luciano admitted that he had been downloading child pornography, and in fact, had downloaded child pornography the previous day. He explained that he had a “sickness” with child pornography, admitted that videos he downloaded ranged from “diaper porn” to toddlers to teens, and that he possessed videos that included bondage and other sadistic acts involving minors.

This matter was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

The case is being investigated by the Garland Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks is in charge of the prosecution.